Silver Ferns coaching great Yvonne Willering says New Zealand's Netball World Cup victory has restored the 'fear factor' in the side.
While the glory of recapturing the Cup after a 16-year drought should be savoured, Willering warned of slipping into complacency and believes the hard work begins now, as the team looks to rebuild after the impending departure of some of its key veterans.
"Whilst it's nice to give them a pat on the back, we've also got to be realistic and development work still has to be done," Willering told Newshub.
"We have credibility now on the international scene, we've now got that fear factor back into the team, which is brilliant."
Willering- who herself won gold as part of the 1979 World Championship-winning NZ side - says the Kiwis must get the jump early on their plan to defend the cup in South Africa in 2023, where the focus needs to be on grooming new talent.
"It is about the development work for the future… you can say that it's a four-year cycle, but I'd say you'd want to develop from within your own country from the start.
"This team was selected solely for the purpose of winning the world championship. This certainly wasn't about development work for the future. We have to keep that in perspective - some of these players won't be here in four years.
"Looking at our competition structure, I still think we don't have enough intense competition in just that tier that sits underneath."
The 69-year-old stressed the importance of not being flattered by the luxuries afforded by the timely return of experienced elite talent like Laura Langman and Casey Kopua - who came out of retirement just for the tournament.
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There's plenty of uncertainty surrounding the availbility of captain Langman and star shooter Maria Folau for the next tournament, who are now 33 and 32-years-old respectively.
"I know we've got the excitement now of being world champs, and saying 'how clever are we in doing that process', but this was a team selected specifically for that.
"We cannot in the future just rely on that experience so we've got to bring another tier through and that is through different competition structures and coaching pathways we need to look at.
"It is about developing players, again, because we are going to lose some critical players and we don't know in another four years where these players are going to be as well."
First and foremost, that rebuild needs to start with the re-securing of their transformative coach Noeline Taurua to ensure continuity, says Willering.
"Obviously, she needs to be re-contracted, it's quite simple really. She brings new energy to the whole structure and system, tremendous belief and passion and really…she's just the best person for the job.
"Netball NZ will be working hard to make it work, even if she wants to stay on the Sunshine Coast, because I know her family has moved there. And you've got to put it in perspective, it's not just about netball, it's about her lifestyle.
"She's achieved now, but we still want to have that maintenance, it's not just about a one-off venture and a tick off, we've got to maintain that."
Newshub.
